William h



@uitrit tate atrat @ffice- WILLIAM H. RAGAN, FILLMORE, ASSIGNOR TO HIMSELF AND N. It. JONES, 0F T ERRE HAUTE, INDIANA.

Letters .Patent No. 65,431, dated June 4, 1867 I IMPROVEMENT IN CHEESE-PRESS.

TO ALL WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:

Be it' known that I, WILLIAM H. ItAGA'X, of Fillmore, in the county of Putnam, and State of Indiana, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Press for Pressing Cheeses, and other purposes g and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description' thereof, which will enable others skilled in the art to make and use the same, reference being had totlle accompanying drawings, forming part of this speciiication, in whieh- Y Figure 1 is a vertical section of my improved 'pre'ssjtaken in the line a: 2.

Figure 2, a side elevation.

Figure 3, a ,horizontal section taken in the line y y, lig. 2.

Figure 4, a sectional detail of the step of the vertical screw.

Similar .letters of reference indicate like parts.

This invention relates to a new and improved plan of construction oi' a press adapted to pressing cheese, grapes, apples, and other substances, and consists in a vertical screw and plunger mounted in a frame over an inclined bed, on which are placed, guide rails with tops in a horizontal plane for supporting cheese-boxes or other receivers of the substances to be pressed, ashereinafter described.

A A are the side beams of a gallows frame, and B B' upper and lower cross-beams, through which passes a, vertical screw, C, that works in a nut, a, made fast to the upper beam B. Thelower end of the screw C carries a plunger or follower, D, which is coupled to the screw by a collar, b, with pins c c, in such manner that the screw shall turn without carrying the follower around with itwhile it raises and lowers it, as shown in detail, iig. 4. Under the follower D is a bench-bed, E, made lower at one end than the other for the purpose of draining whey, wine, cider, or any juice extracted bythe press, and supported in part by a siele frame, M. In order to place the receivers containing the materials to bc pressed on a horizontal 4plane under the follower D, rails or ribs d d are fastened lengthwise of the bed, the tops of which are made level', and taper oil` at one end. On the outside rails are attached sub-rails e e, lower in the level, on which are placed small wheels g g, that are hung on tables or platforms z, which support the matters to be pressed, and are run back and forth on the bed, as required and shown in fig. 1. The platform z is loaded with cheese or any other articles to be pressed, and may be arranged with suitable boxes or receivers 7c 7c', and is run on the wheels g g under the follower D.

The press is operated by a crank, m, on shaft m', vthat carries the bevel-wheel u, gearing into the wheel nl, on the lower end of the vertical shaft n2, that carries the elongated pinion 'p engaging in the spur-wheel p', made fast to thev screw C. 'It will be seen that by turning the crank, motion will be given to the screw, so that it can travel-up or down as the spur-wheel p' rises and falls in the teeth of the pinion p. The screw is held rigidly in a vertical position by the beams B B', through which it passes, thus relieving .the -nnt a from all strain.

Having described my invention, I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. -The arrangement of the vertical screw C in the frame A A, in combination with the elongated pinion p actuating it by means of the spur-wheel p', substantially as and for the purposes herein described.

2. The inclined bed-E, provided with level rails Z cl, in combination with the platforms h, arranged and operating substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

WILLIAM H. RAGAN.

Witnesses:

JOHN BUInvsInn, R. S. RAGAN. 

